Gibsons helps creative entrepreneurs to build success

Talented artist Terry is inspired by his local village to paint a success

Gibsons, the independent, family-owned British games and puzzles company, has been supporting local retailers for decades, by enlisting talented artists to create educational, historical and cultural jigsaw puzzles. Since the company began trading in 1919, Gibsons has added over 1,200 puzzles to its award-winning portfolio, working with hundreds of artists to date.

From paintings to puzzle sensations, independent retailers are gaining valuable inspiration from their local landscapes. One of Gibsons best-selling artists, Terry Harrison, provides an example of an entrepreneur using their local village to benefit commercially, by painting stunning harbour scenes, which are then printed on 100% recycled board, and produced as jigsaws for those passionate puzzle lovers to add to their collections.

Terry Harrison’s first painting for Gibsons, ‘Heart of the Village’, set in a village called in Dogmersfield, Hampshire, stole the hearts of thousands of Brits. Following the success, Gibsons’ Chairman personally asked Terry to paint a series of scenes based on coastal harbours. The next puzzle released was of Polperro, Cornwall, which was picked up by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) for its catalogue, and sold more copies than any other product in the catalogue.

The most successful Terry Harrison puzzle to date is Bourton-on-the-Water, the Cotswolds, with 25,000 copies sold across the UK. The art was inspired by a special moment in Terry’s life, where he proposed to his ‘then girlfriend’ on his favourite bridge in Bourton-on-the-Water.

Gibsons has embraced the inner passions and interests of its talented artists, to help them build and manufacture jigsaw puzzles and board games. Terry has always been involved with art and design and started his own publishing company in 1990, specialising in fine art prints, and writing educational art books. So far, Terry has written 22 books retailing in local art shops, book stores and even globally via Amazon, and has sold over 500k copies.

Terry’s latest project is the Bourton at Christmas puzzle, which is now on sale for Christmas 2015 for £8.99 and available on Amazon.

Painter and contributor to Gibsons puzzles, Terry Harrison commented: “It’s such a pleasure to do what I enjoy most – capturing the most beautiful scenery in a painting. Gibsons has enabled me to share my artwork on a national scale and enlighten people across the UK of the local landscapes that surround us all. My paintings have been transformed into high quality, top-selling puzzles, which has opened up lots of opportunities for me and helped to unlock my passion for art.”

Managing Director of Gibsons, Nick Wright commented:“Terry is one of our most creative artists. He always manages to capture a sense of warmth, as well as true British community spirit in all of his paintings. We really hope that the snow scene of Bourton-on-the-Water will be as popular, if not more popular, than the original.”

In the late 70s H P Gibson & Sons shortened its name to ‘Gibsons’, and shortly after, in the early 80s, Gibsons introduced their first jigsaw puzzles.

Along with the new jigsaws came new themes, replacing dreary subject matters with delectable new imagery, often drawn by specially commissioned artists.

Gibsons originally had only six puzzle pictures in the range which depicted aerial shots of well-known British landmarks, but nowadays, the range has grown to over 250 titles, running from 2 to 2000 pieces, with over 50 new jigsaw puzzle images added every year.

Gibsons have a broad selection of products for all the family including games and puzzles suitable from pre-school to big school and beyond! http://gibsonsgames.co.uk